Amex Increasing Pay with Points Rebate up to 3 Million Points for Big Spenders

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American Express is sending out notices to big spenders of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express that they can increase the maximum rebate they'll receive per year on Pay with Points redemptions from 500,000 points up to 3,000,000 points for 2018.

The Pay with Points rebate on your airline of choice and first/business class tickets across all airlines is still at 35%, but with the chance to lift the 500,000-point cap for big spenders, it might entice cardholders to keep spending with American Express before shifting spend elsewhere to receive better value in their rewards for each dollar spent.

How Big is the Increase? Any Caveats?

• Cardmembers that spend between $1,000,000 and $3,000,000 in 2017 will have their rebate cap increased from 500,000 points to 1,000,000 points.
• Cardmembers that spend more than $3,000,000 in 2017 will have their rebate cap increased from 500,000 points to 3,000,000 points.
• No enrollment is required
• Purchases must post by December 31, 2017, to count towards your $1MM or $3MM threshold

This capacity increase is based on 2017 spending, for how much you'll be able to receive as a rebate in 2018.

Full Terms & Conditions

¹To use Pay with Points, you must charge your eligible airfare purchase through American Express Travel to a Membership Rewards® program-enrolled American Express® Card. Points will be debited from your Membership Rewards account, and credit for corresponding dollar amount will be issued to the American Express Card account used. If points redeemed do not cover entire amount, the balance of purchase price will remain on the American Express Card account. Points must be used at the time of booking. Pay with Points requires a minimum redemption of 5,000 points.

Business Platinum Card Members will receive 3.5 extra points for every 10 points they redeem for either a First or Business class flight on any airline, or for flights with their selected qualifying airline using Membership Rewards Pay with Points through American Express Travel (35% Airline Bonus), up to 500,000 bonus points per calendar year, per each Membership Rewards account. For First or Business class flights on a Card Member’s selected qualifying airline, the Card Member will still receive only 3.5 extra points for every 10 points redeemed. Card Member must select a qualifying airline at www.americanexpress.com/airlinechoice . Only the Basic Card Member or Authorized Account Manager(s) on the Card Account can select the qualifying airline. The airline you select for the 35% Airline Bonus and the $200 Airline Fee Credit must be the same. Card Members who have not chosen a qualifying airline will be able to change their choice on time each year in January at www.americanexpress.com/airlinechoice or by calling the number on the back of your Card. Card Members who do not change their airline selection will remain with their current airline.

If you select Spirit Airlines, Southwest Airlines, or AirTran Airways, to receive your 35% Airline Bonus you must call Business Platinum Travel Service at 1-800-553-9497. A flight booked as part of a travel package or booked with the American Express U.S. Representative Travel Network is not eligible for the 35% Airline Bonus. In addition, to be eligible to receive extra points, Card account(s) must not be canceled or past due at the time of extra points fulfillment. If booking is canceled, the extra points will be deducted from your Membership Rewards account. Extra points will be credited to your Membership Rewards account approximately 6-10 weeks after eligible airfare purchases appear on your billing statement. See membershiprewards.com/terms for Membership Rewards program terms and conditions. This 35% Airline Bonus is the maximum Membership Rewards points you can get back for Pay with Points on flights booked through American Express Travel. Bonus ID: A6ZB.

²Limited Time Airline Bonus Points Offer: With the Airline Bonus benefit: if you have $1 million and less than $3 million in eligible spend on your Business Platinum Card in calendar year 2017, you can get up to 1 million bonus points back in 2018, and if you have $3 million or more in eligible spend in 2017, you can get up to 3 million bonus points back in 2018. To be eligible for this offer you must meet the eligible spend thresholds on a Business Platinum Card Account between January 1, 2017 and December 31, 2017. “Eligible spend” means purchases of goods and services minus returns and other credits. Eligible spend does not include fees or interest charges, cash advances, purchases of travelers checks, purchases or reloading of prepaid cards, or purchases of other cash equivalents. Transactions must post to the Card account by December 31, 2017 to contribute towards the eligible spend. Spend on Employee Cards will count towards the Basic Card Member’s eligible spend. Effective January 1, 2019, the amount of bonus points the Card Member can receive through the Airline Bonus benefit will reset to 500,000 bonus points. If you have two or more Business Platinum Cards linked to a single Membership Rewards account, you will only be eligible for this offer once. This offer is not available for Employee Card Members. Terms and conditions for the Airline Bonus benefit apply.

Our Take

While there is a small subset of overall cardholders that'll qualify for this benefit, it is a right move on the part American Express. You need to reward your most loyal customers, and removing limits keeps customers using your card.

The language “Effective January 1, 2019, the amount of bonus points the Card Member can receive through the Airline Bonus benefit will reset to 500,000 bonus points.” has us clearly thinking that this is a one-time thing, but who knows, maybe Amex is looking to test it and doesn't want to leave the door open for speculation if it'll be a recurring promotion.

At the same time, if you're spending this much on a credit card, we'd likely recommend you consider diversifying your points portfolio with a card like the Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card; point-diversification, especially as flexible travel rewards' give you more options when it comes time to book that dream trip.

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